RCVS to hold virtual fellowship evening

The RCVS is hosting a virtual fellowship evening to formally welcome veterinary surgeons who have become fellows this year.

The online event on 1 October will celebrate the scientific achievements and knowledge of the veterinary professions, and start with a welcome and three year-plan update from John Innes, who chairs the fellowship board.

RCVS president Mandisa Greene will then welcome new fellows before a series of talks where existing fellows have the opportunity to talk about aspects of their careers, work and research.

Talks

Those speaking will be:

• Freda Scott-Park, who will talk about the future of rural mixed practice, the development of the elusive mixed practice graduate and the work of the Veterinary Delivery Landscape Project Steering Group in Scotland.
• Gerhard Steenkamp, who will talk about his 2018 experience of performing surgery on Grand, an iconic elephant resident of Tbilisi Zoo in Georgia and how this helped to heal a community.
• Lord Sandy Trees, who will talk about his appointment to the House of Lords, his role as a peer, how his varied career has provided the foundation for this role and how the veterinary skill set is relevant for tackling a variety of global issues.

Keynote

Mark Woodhouse, professor of infectious disease epidemiology at the Usher Institute at The University of Edinburgh, is the keynote speaker, who will deliver a talk called “COVID-19: science in the spotlight”, which will end the night.

Prof Innes said: “As in previous years, this event is open to all veterinary professionals, so I do hope that, as it will be hosted online this year, many more vets and vet nurses will be able to join us for the evening.

“It will be wonderful to welcome our new fellows and find out a little more about each of them, and to hear from three of them in more detail about the areas of their work they are passionate about.”

Involvement

He added: “I also look forward to hearing from Prof Woolhouse as someone who has been very much directly involved in the response to the unprecedented circumstances of this year, and can talk about how scientific knowledge and policy interact. I am sure it will be a fascinating and enlightening experience.”

Invitations to the evening have been sent to all vets and VNs, and more information is available via the RCVS website or by emailing the RCVS.